Detergent formulators are continuously faced with the task of devising products to remove a broad spectrum of soils and stains from fabrics. Chemically and physico-chemically, the varieties of soils and stains range the spectrum from polar soils, such as proteinaceous, clay, and inorganic soils, to non-polar soils, such as soot, carbon-black, byproducts of incomplete hydrocarbon combustion, and organic soils. The formulation challenge has been accentuated by the recent high interest and motivation to reduce the level of surfactants in cleaning detergents for environmental sustainability and cost reasons. The reduction of level of surfactants naturally leads to an erosion of soil removal and greasy stain removal. Additionally, the global trend of using washing conditions at lower temperature further diminishes cleaning capabilities of typical detergents.
As a result of these trends, there is a need for new laundry and cleaning ingredients that provide hydrophobic and hydrophilic soil cleaning and whiteness maintenance. The material should exhibit good soil detaching capability. They should also minimize the amount of suspended and emulsified soil from redepositing on the surfaces of the textiles or hard surfaces that leads to a dingy appearance on the surfaces. Preferably, the new ingredient would also display a synergy with proteases for removing protease-sensitive stains like grass.